Monthly Archives: June 2012

Those people who have followed this blog know that any time I write about anything, I do it with passion. But passion takes a lot of energy.

This year has been emotionally taxing, with the death of one of my good friends and that death occurring only a year and a half after another one of my good friends died. I’ve tried to keep the blog going, but I’ve found it extremely difficult, if not impossible to post regularly–four to eight times a month– with the same effortless passion I’ve had in the past

Having come back from Africa, I’ve experienced a clarity of self that I’ve never known, and I know that writing this blog helped me to start the journey toward that clarity. But keeping up a blog is a lot of work, and especially because I’ve been trying to finish two books.

One book I’ve talked about a lot: The Age of Phillis is a poetry book on the life and times of Phillis Wheatley, the first African American woman to publish a book. Phillis Wheatley was kidnapped into slavery as a child and it is assumed that she embarked on the horrific Middle Passage in what was then (1761) called the “Senegambia” region. The trip to Senegal was important to my finishing that book, but equally important to finishing a book is, like, actually writing the book.

The other book I’m writing is a novel that I’ve tried to make go away, and which won’t budge from my soul. I didn’t talk a lot about the novel, because I didn’t know whether I would ever hit a groove in writing it. But now that I have, I hope to finish it, God willing. In fact, this blog helped me find my prose voice, the strength and courage of it. The humor and the honesty of it. But unfortunately, trying to write two sets of prose each week–one for a novel and one for this blog–is working my nerves overtime. I had to make a choice, and the novel won.

I know that folks will be disappointed–and a few, even a little bit upset–that I’ve decided to take an indefinite hiatus from blogging, but I hope y’all will understand where I’m coming from. And also, I hope y’all will see that I’m not really leaving y’all, just going away and coming back in another form–hopefully with two books.

I am going to maintain this blog space and page, so that if you miss me, you can always read past, archived posts. And you can always follow me on twitter @blklibrarygirlor “like” my Facebook fan page to keep in touch. And soon, if God says the same, I will have some new books for you to read!

I mean it sincerely when I say, I can’t thank y’all enough for the support you have shown to this blog. That support was completely unexpected but so needed in a difficult time in my life. In writing this blog, I’ve become more courageous in expressing my views and more aware of my artistic voice. I’ve discovered a fearlessness I never thought I was capable of. And I learned what was important to me. I was able to grow in these ways because of you, my readers, and the kind appreciation you’ve shown me.